Women's Indoor Track to Open Season December 12 at Dickinson Holiday Invitational

by Sports Information
12/11/03

LANCASTER, PA - The Franklin & Marshall College women's indoor track team will open the 2003-04 season on Friday, December 12 at the Dickinson College Holiday Invitational. Start time is set for 6:00 p.m.

This year, the Diplomats will look to sophomore Tara Cooney (So., Douglaston, NY/St. Francis) to establish herself as a presence in the Conference as she reset three school records at last year's conference championship meet.

In the 800 meters, she lowered her school record time of 2:26.78 by eight hundredths of a second by crossing the finish line in 2:26.70 to finish eighth and added school record performances in the distance medley relay and 4X400 meters.

In the DMR, the team of Jeanette Finster (Sr., LaCanada, CA/Flintridge Preparatory), Beth Randolph (So., St. Davids, PA/Episcopal Academy), Cooney and Anne Blommer placed seventh in a time of 13:02.65. Further, she finished her record-breaking performances in the 4X400 as the team of Randolph, Finster, Brittney Dhein (So., Telford, PA/Pennridge) and Cooney finished seventh in 4:15.06 to reset their own previous record of 4:17.83.

In other events, Robyn Haertel (So., Millburn, NJ/Millburn) and Finster will look to improve on last season's performances at the CC meet as Haertel placed sixth in the 55 meter dash (7.73) and 10th in the 200 meter dash (27.79), while Finster crossed the line in 1:03.00 to finish eighth in the 400 meter dash.

A key to the Diplomats' success in 2004 will be junior Bryn Benford (Malvern, PA/Great Valley) who placed sixth in the high jump (4-07.75), fifth in the long jump (15-09.00), triple jump (33-09.50) and shot put (34-11.75) to account for 15 of the Diplomats' 24 points at the CC meet.

In 2004, first year head coach F. Carl Schnabel will lead the Diplomats.

An assistant track & field coach at Kutztown University of Pennsylvania (1997-2002), Lehigh University (1993-1997) and Biola University (1988-1993), Schnabel became the 16th coach in 90 years of men's track & field and the fourth women's coach in 23 years of competition.

He will lead a women's team which is coming off an eighth place finish at the 2003 Centennial Conference Championships at Ursinus.

Following the Dickinson Invitational, Franklin & Marshall will continue the season in invitationals at Yale University (January 9-10), Kutztown (January 16), Susquehanna (January 24), Bucknell (January 30-31), East Stroudsburg (February 7), the Armory (February 14) and Susquehanna (February 21) before travelling to Haverford College for the Centennial Conference Championships on February 27-28.